Why Aren't There More Women Engineers?

Women have made substantial employment gains in business, law, medicine, and behavioral sciences during the past generation, but there has not been a corresponding increase in the number of women engineers. Explanations for the slow progress of women in engineering fields often assume that women do not have the same level of mathematical or visual-spatial skills as men, yet decades of research have not produced solid support for this assumption. This study presents results of a campus survey indicating that many men engineering students have negative attitudes toward women, are generally more confident about their success in engineering, and may receive more support from peers or mentors than do women students. Focusing efforts on improving the engineering climate may be necessary to increase the numbers of women in engineering careers.